Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the Masters in Business Administration--Durban University of Technology, 2009. / The South Africa alcohol industry is one of the most challenging and competitive sectors of the FMCG. With the strong presence of international brands, the local spirits environment is seemingly becoming tough and uncertain, due to products and prices reaching parity. Organisations within this monopolized industry are faced with intense competition and are seeking ways to differentiate themselves from the competition. One of the differentiating factors being considered by the organisation under study is improving its service delivery. The aim of this study is to evaluate customer expectations and perceptions of service quality at Edward Snell & Co Ltd. within the greater Durban area. This report has reviewed current literature and opinions about customer service, and has also reviewed factors such as customer service, service characteristics and its measurement. The report also covers data analysis, data collection, and questionnaire design in the research methodology chapter. The analysis of the results reveals important gap findings amongst the tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy dimensions of service quality. Finally, in order to improve the levels of customer service at Edward Snell & Co Ltd., recommendations such as regular service quality measurements, education of the organisation’s workforce and other general recommendations are included in the study.

Thesis (MTech (Retail Business Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / Small Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) play a vital role in employment creation and economic growth. As South Africa experiences population growth, so does the township small business industry. Township refers to those areas that were previously reserved for Blacks, Coloured and Indians under the discriminatory apartheid government. The characteristics of these areas included the following: poor infrastructure, high crime, low income and generally exclusion from mainstream economic activities According to the top three liquor manufacturers and brand distributors that claim about 80% of the total market share by volume and revenue (South African Breweries, Distell and Brandhouse Beverages) the township market makes the largest contribution to their business revenue. These giants are recording growth every year, but the development, growth, sustainability and success of the township liquor retail market is static and unsatisfactory. How township liquor retailers can achieve sustainable growth is not yet clear. The significant contribution made by the industry to the economy and job creation has been recognised by industry role players at large. The Department of Trade and Industries (DTI) has also expressed its commitment to supporting this industry as one that shows potential for growth and sustainability. This particular sector needs assistance to improve the success and sustainability of township liquor retailing, especially with the creation of employment opportunities. The objective of this study, then, is to develop an industry specific framework that identifies and addresses the critical success factors (CSFs) for township liquor retailing. The study is based on qualitative interviews carried out with industry experts (as an exploratory study) and liquor retailers from two of Cape Town’s townships, namely Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain.

A customer relationship management programme is a management tool that enables organisations to identify, satisfy and retain customers profitably by leveraging information technology. In addition to this the programme also links all the functional business units of the organisation together to operate as a single cohesive unit. This paper investigates whether or not SAB Miller should utilise a customer relationship management programme to provide off-trade retailers with world-class customer service. An important reason for this investigation is that the local beer market has experienced declining growth over the past few years. Furthermore SAB Miller which has had a monopoly in the South African beer market now faces increased competition in the premium segment of the beer market, which is experiencing growth and has good margins. In order to determine whether or not SAB Miller should institute a customer relationship management programme, a theoretical and empirical investigation was undertaken. The theoretical investigation provided a background to what components make up a customer relationship management programme and how these components are used to develop a customer relationship management strategic framework. Due to customer relationship management programmes not operating in isolation, the various key functions that support a customer relationship management programme were also introduced. Both the advantages and disadvantages of using such a programme were also introduced. The information technology aspects of the customer relationship management programme were also investigated. In terms of the empirical study it was determined that SAB Miller is not currently using a customer relationship management programme. The company, however, does make use of a tailored service package to segment their customers, to determine call frequencies by representatives, the financial needs of customers and what level of service to provide to customers. However, after conducting personal interviews with a sample of off-trade retailers in the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality, it was determined that SAB Miller and Namibian Breweries Ltd (Brandhouse) provided very similar levels of service in terms of key functions supported by a customer relationship management programme. Therefore, by introducing a customer relationship management programme, SAB Miller could enhance their service levels and profitability to off-trade retailers in the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality.

Retailers, Wholesalers, Marketers, Alcohol distributors and Manufacturers continuously fight for volume growth and market-share gain within the total alcohol market. Most of the answers of how much each can gain over a period of time remain a mystery that can only be answered by the consumers. The consumers determine who will have more share of wallet or share of throat more than the other. This is also equally applicable to brands, packs and the various alcohol categories that exist in the market. Why is it important, you possibly wonder? It is important because the alcohol market is an integrated part of our society; it contributes immensely to the South African economy and its value chain is enormous in value. Consumption expenditure increased from R3 513 039 000 in 2004 to R8 558 232 000 by 2013 in the Eastern Cape alone. In the last 10 years there has been an increase of new products that are being introduced into the market across all categories ranging from traditional alcoholic brands to flavoured and ready to drink brands. This presents an opportunity to alcohol consumers, alcohol shoppers and sellers alike. This opportunity meant that the consumer is spoilt for choice and retailers / wholesalers have an opportunity to list more brands which could possibly result in increased margins. Further to the above, South African marketers face both market challenges as well as proposed legislation regarding advertising of alcohol products. Some of the challenges include marketing clutter, competition, diverse nature of the South African consumer, infrastructure issues, government legislations, social media and digital platforms. The liquor industry of the Eastern Cape contributes approximately R7,7 billion to the Gross Geographic Product of the economy of the Eastern Cape through direct and indirect impacts; Approximately 23 620 permanent jobs are supported by the Eastern Cape liquor industry annually; Tax revenue attributable to the liquor industry in the Eastern Cape is R3,9 billion; and the economic impact of the liquor industry on gross capital formation is in the region R3,4 billion per annum. The purpose of this research is to optimise the marketing mix to influence consumer purchasing decisions in liquor outlets within the Border district within the above context. The objective of this study is to identify the marketing mix that influences consumer purchasing decisions in liquor outlets. The study will be conducted within the Border district. The Border district consists of various geographies within the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The area of the study will focus on key municipalities namely; Buffalo city, Amathole, Chris Hani and Joe Gqabi municipalities. The target sample size for this study was 360 consumers. A survey questionnaire was used to measure respondents’ preferences, attitudes, motivations and perceptions. The respondents were instructed to highlight the answer that best described them and / or their preferences. Questions were asked and the respondents had to highlight to what extent they agreed or disagreed with the question. Key findings are that there is high level of agreement that price and promotions influence consumer-purchasing decision in liquor outlets. The highest percentage of respondents are in agreement that beer is a first choice of drink and a second is spirits. 69% of the respondents agree that they change from the usual drink to a different drink when they go out. This can be attributed to the notion that consumers like to badge and want to be seen drinking brands that will be deemed socially acceptable in public, or brands that are the latest trend. The key benefits from the study include improved ability for marketers to reposition brands, give clear recommendations for drinking occasions and better understanding on how to efficiently distribute alcohol portfolios, extend brands and introduce limited editions.

In the contemporary business environment, a plethora of retail literature exists which examine the influence of CSR on the business. However, literature that explores Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in the liquor retail sector has been relatively sparse. This study explored CSR in Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) liquor retail outlets in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The objectives of the study were to investigate the engagement of SME liquor retailers in CSR practices, to ascertain whether a relationship exists between providing employee training on responsible retailing of alcohol and CSR practices by SME liquor retailers, to investigate whether employee involvement in decision making influences CSR practices by SME liquor retailers, to ascertain whether a relationship exists between the practical actions to reduce alcohol-related harm and CSR practices by SME liquor retailers, to investigate whether SME liquor retailers do social good as an expression of CSR as well as to determine whether SME liquor retailers are influenced by stakeholders to engage in CSR initiatives. Both primary and secondary data sources were used in this study. A quantitative research design was used in conducting this research. Convenience sampling, a non-probability sampling technique, was used to select a sample of 94 from the sample frame of 123 SME liquor retailers. The survey method, by way of a self-administered questionnaire was used to collect primary data. The statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) as statistical software was used to analyse data. The Chi-square test, Pearson correlation, and descriptive statistics were used to analyse data. The findings of this research revealed that Stakeholder influence, employee involvement in decision making and employee training in responsible retailing of alcohol have an influence on the CSR practices of SME liquor retailers. The study also identified the safety and practical measures that SME liquor retailers are practicing as a way of reducing alcohol related-harm. A recommendation to stakeholders, such as suppliers and government to find more strategies of influencing SME liquor retailers to practice CSR, was made. Lastly, recommendations were made to SME liquor owners and managers on how to improve their CSR practices.

Master of Technology Marketing Management in the Faculty of Business at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2013 / The advent of IT technology in particular, mobile technology has forced most of the private sector to re-evaluate how they interact and communicate with their intermediaries. Since the early 1990s most businesses have put the intermediary at the centre of their business by means of business strategies like Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solutions. However, the speed at which technology is evolving is forcing businesses to evaluate new and alternative means of managing intermediary relationships, as intermediaries now drive the economy, not businesses. The very essence of a good CRM programme is its reliance on an IT system which is advanced enough to analyse the captured intermediary data, transform that data into usable knowledge, which is then stored in a centralised, crossfunctional database or data warehouse. Most businesses agree that the goal of CRM solutions is to maximise business profits by maximising the value of interaction with intermediaries. Successful CRM businesses have strong, clearly defined business strategies that focus on the intermediary and generate a process-orientated view of the organisation. CRM functionality therefore creates a single view of the intermediary and the business as well as support to the Marketing, Sales, Order, Production and Service processes. This dissertation investigated the CRM functionality within the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) wholesale and retail liquor sector of the City of Cape Town, paying particular attention to the three channels that the liquor industry operate in. These three channels are segmented as the formal Off-premise consumption, formal On-premise consumption and the Informal Main market. The formal Off-premise consumption channel consist of the mainstream convenience and self-service liquor retailers where stock is purchased and consumed at another location by the end user. The formal On-premise consumption channel consists of venues where patrons purchase and consume liquor on the spot. The informal Main market, which is dominated by shebeens and taverns, is a combination of the Off- and On-premise consumption channels where bottle purchases and consumption occur on site together. This dissertation investigates one primary and four secondary questions within these channels. The primary question will establish whether a mobile CRM programme can be used as a marketing instrument to create a competitive advantage within the B2B licensed liquor industry of South Africa. The secondary questions establish whether intermediaries are willing to adopt CRM technology, what barriers exist, what the benefits are for both intermediary and company and whether there will be a reduction in communication costs for both parties. The South African government regulates the South African liquor industry in that only licensed outlets may trade in liquor. Within the Western Cape region, there are approximately 4,000 licensed outlets of which approximately 2,000 licences (data obtained from a leading liquor wholesalers company database) fall within the boundaries of Cape Town. A leading liquor wholesaler has legal contracts with each one of these accounts, providing a defined database from which primary research was conducted. Primary researches, in the form of quantitative interviews with a random sample of 150 intermediaries, across the three identified channels were conducted for this study. Questionnaires were used to establish how a competitive B2B mobile CRM programme can be implemented, while possible barriers and facilitators to mobile CRM were also considered. The findings produced two results: one result was expected but the second result was not expected by the researcher. The first results were that 57.5% of respondents, across all business channels, indicated their willingness to receiving a mCRM programme on their mobile devices. The unexpected finding was that 57.3% of respondents across all business channels had no idea or did not know what a CRM programme was. From these findings several recommendations are discussed namely: the implementation of a six month tactical marketing campaign which would expose intermediaries to the concepts and ideas of a CRM programme; the establishment of a comprehensively updated intermediary database; welltrained field sales staff who would support the CRM programme once implemented; a simple, easy to use and navigate mCRM programme to begin with. This programme would have to have the ability and capability to progress in the future as intermediaries become more familiar with the system; and a complete company philosophy, with a clear, holistic and coherent business strategy, that would embrace the mCRM concept to drive future growth opportunities. Key Words: business-to-business; customer relationship management; electronic customer relationship management; Information Technology and mobile customer relationship management.